Deputies: Barron student brought knife to school to 'protect himself'

A Barron Collier High School student was arrested Tuesday, accused of carrying a buck knife to school because "he felt he had to protect himself."

The 16-year-old boy was arrested at 7:45 a.m. after an anonymous call to Crime Stoppers alerted the Collier County Sheriff's Office, according to an arrest report.

The arrest comes barely a year after a 14-year-old Palmetto Ridge High School student stabbed and killed a classmate during an after-school fight at a bus stop.

On Tuesday, the student was in a classroom when deputies patted him down and found the knife with a nearly 3-inch blade in the front pocket of his shorts, according to an arrest report. The boy, whose name is not being released because he is a juvenile, told investigators he had an issue with another student over the weekend, because the other student was "verbally abusive" to his girlfriend, reports said.

The arrested teen told the other boy's girlfriend not to tolerate the abuse, which angered the boy.

"I didn't want to be killed," the 16-year-old told deputies after his arrest.

When asked if he told his father about the weekend incident and a possible fight, the teen said he had not but "he felt he had to protect himself," the arrest report said. Several students also told deputies about the weapon at the school and were visibly shaken, an investigator wrote.

The 16-year-old is facing a felony charge of possession of a weapon on school property.

The Collier County School District was aware of the arrest, spokeswoman Leanne Zinser said Tuesday, however when asked about disciplinary action, the district would not comment.

"Any school follow through would be part of the student record and ... is confidential," Zinser said in an email.

Questions to the school district regarding whether the arrest would trigger a review of any school policies were unanswered Tuesday afternoon.

It was just over a year ago that Dylan Nuno, 16, a junior at Palmetto Ridge, followed Jorge Saavedra, then a 14-year-old freshmen, off a school bus with several other teens, pursued him, and attacked him. Saavedra attempted to get away once, but then stabbed Nuno 12 times in the chest, killing him.

Saavedra, who said he had been bullied by Nuno, was cleared of any wrongdoing in January under Florida's "Stand Your Ground" law.

The Collier County School District did not change its bullying policies after the killing, saying its policies already aligned with what is required by the Florida Department of Education.